The Hospitality School in Harare (SAHTC) continues to set the bar high on the global stage as another of its student chefs has been selected to participate in this year’s edition of International Young Chef Olympiad in India.
Nineteen-year-old Makanaka Ganyaupfu, one of SAHTC’s junior members of the kitchen staff, will represent the school and country.
The young chef was selected after a tight contest that saw the first-year student come out tops. The other aspirants, Jerry Mavhusa and Kumbirai Muzhira, came up as runner-ups.
Makanaka arrived in New Delhi on Monday morning accompanied by her mentor Olinda Mvududu.
The culinary olympiad, in its 10th edition, kicked off at the 2 500-seater Siri Fort auditorium in the Indian capital on Monday.
Considered the world’s biggest culinary extravaganza, the competition is expected to run until February 5 through the country’s five cities of New Delhi, Bangalore, Pune, Hyderabad and Kolkata as well as in Goa.
Young student chefs from 60 countries around the world will be battling it out for the Best Young Chef in the World award adjudicated by 25 international judges, including Indian celebrity television chef Cyrus Todiwala.
SAHTC–The Hospitality School, as it is officially known, said in a statement the team is excited to be venturing into this realm of world-class competitions and is ready to take on the giants in the culinary industry.
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“This is the 7th year the SAHTC is participating in this competition. Past participants are Tadiwa Tendayi, the late Takudzwa Matinenga, Tinotenda Mutamba, Walter Maseko, Tafadzwa Siyanga and last year’s participant Eliasaph Chipare,” the Hospitality School said.
Established in 2015 under the auspices of the International Hospitality Council, the culinary competition is organised by the International Institute of Hotel Management, a part of the IndiSmart Group, which is a large conglomerate that operates the IndiSmart Hotels and offers a wide range of services in the field of hospitality management education training and consultancy in India and South East Asia.
Participants will be vying for the prestigious gold, silver, bronze medals as well as several other awards, including the Dr Suborno Bose Challenge, named after the Young Chef Olympiad chairperson.
Zimbabwe is one of the 12 African countries being represented at the olympiad alongside Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho and South Africa, among others. Zimbabwe is in Group C together with Singapore, England, Indonesia, Madagascar, Netherlands, Seychelles, Uzbekistan, Uganda and Bangladesh.
Zimbabwean participants have been recognised on three occasions at the global event notably Tadiwa Tendai who won the most promising chef at the 2016 edition. In 2019 Tafadzwa Siyanga walked away with the Rising Star Award in Pune, while last year’s participant Eliasaph Chipare clinched the award for the Best in Kitchen Hygiene practices.
Established over 20 years ago, SAHTC–The Hospitality School is the first culinary institution from Africa to have sent representatives to the global culinary competition.
SAHTC is distinguished for providing world-class training for both the local and international hospitality and tourism industry.
The school is ranked amongst the best hospitality training schools in Africa. Most of their trainees are placed in top hospitality establishments all over the world.
“With our competencies and skills recognised internationally, we make your vocation your vacation. Past participants are employed and self-employed all over world,” Mike Farrell, the director of the institution, told IndependentXtra.
Zimbabwe is now recognised as a great source of talent worldwide as the school strategically works with educational organisations, both locally and internationally, including the Higher Education ministry, City and Guilds London, American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute and the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education, among others. — Staff Writer.
